Government planning to revive BSNL and MTNL with a Rs 15,000 crore merger: Report

BSNL and MTNL have been struggling to generate revenue for more than a decade now and it worsened with the entry of Jio. Hence, the government is planning to revive the state-run telcos. According to a report from IANS, the revival plan will cost approximately Rs 74,000 crore of which Rs 22,000 would be used for acquiring 4G spectrum and for the voluntary retirement scheme (VRS). The Union Cabinet has approved the 4G spectrum allocation to merge BSNL and MTNL while allowing them to raise sovereign bonds of Rs. 15,000 crores for their revival. 

As of now, MTNL operates in Mumbai and Delhi, whereas BSNL operates in rest of India.  The estimated loss for BSNL in 2019 is Rs 14,000 crores. While MTNL is listed, it has its net worth already eroded. The current employee count of BSNL is around 1,63,500, whereas MTNL has around 20,000 employees. The PSU’s merger has been a point of discussion for over 10 years now, but it couldn’t be taken up due to HR and listing issues.

After the cabinet briefing, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “BSNL & MTNL will raise a sovereign bond of Rs. 15,000 crores for their revival and assets of both the PSUs worth Rs. 38,000 crores will be monetised. The cabinet also approved an attractive VRS package for the employees which has been slightly tweaked from the original Gujarat model. Government will provide 4G spectrum on an administrative allocation basis. The cabinet has also given in-principle nod to the merger of BSNL and MTNL and till modalities are in place, MTNL will be a subsidiary of BSNL."

The revival plan will help BSNL to compete with private telecom companies in a better way. The telcos will receive the revival package in another month or so.

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Did Realme accidentally start serving ads on ColorOS 60 Turns out, its not the only one

After gunning for Xiaomi’s throat for serving ads in its budget smartphones, Realme is now reportedly pushing ads in the Realme 1 after the new ColorOS update. A few users took to Twitter soon after the update was pushed out to complain about ads in their UI, in a way that’s similar to how Xiaomi also shows ads. Later, Realme CMO India, Francis Wong tweeted it was an error on their part and withdrew the feature from the devices.

Hey @C4ETech @C4EAsh @sharmajitech @RedmiIndia Device: Realme 1, beta firmware.. so they told they don't sell ads in the launch event but the question is untill when?? pic.twitter.com/sDUrAlimTM

— Supratim Dey (@Supratim96) October 23, 2019

Ads were popping up on ColorOS version CPH1861EX_11_C.45 that was pushed out with the latest October 2019 security patch. The ads are showing up in system apps like the download manager, and even as pop-ups on the home screen. The update added an option to ‘Get Reccommendations’ in the Settings App, which now have been taken down.

Users also reported the Realme U1 receiving ads on the UI after the latest RMX1831EX_11_C.15 update, but we could not independently confirm it since there were no screenshots of the same shared by users.

To clear the confusion, there is no ads. A system error from a beta software version. That's it.

— Francis Wang (@FrancisRealme) October 23, 2019

After users started complaining about ads in their smartphones, CMO of Realme India, Francis Wong first claimed it was showing up only on the beta version of the update. But after people claimed it’s on the stable version, Wong replied it’s a “system error from a beta software version.” Did an unwanted beta feature accidentally make its way to the stable version? More importantly, if it was indeed in the beta version, was Realme testing ads in their UI and planning for a wider rollout in the future? Let’s hope not.

Realme has consistently promised its fast-growing user base it will never show ads in the UI, something that the company likes to point out about Redmi smartphones from time to time.

The new update for the Realme 1 introduces system-wide dark mode, the October 2019 security patch, changes in the quick settings option, app cloning support and Digital Wellbeing support that Google has now made mandatory for all OEMs to offer in their smartphones.

Realme and Xiaomi not the only one

Guys vivo is also showing ads@stufflistings @AndroidSaint @Vivo_India pic.twitter.com/i9k3h6zQKB

— Smarty Abid (@abidshah271210) October 8, 2019

 

Color os is also showing ads in notification from colors os pre installed app called app market on my realme 3 pro. @realmemobiles @geekyranjit @MadhavSheth1 pic.twitter.com/yNZpreySam

— Ayan Basu (@AyanBsu) August 25, 2019

While most of the backlash is aimed towards Xiaomi for admitting to pushing ads in MIUI as part of their revenue stream, they’re not the only one throwing ads on the face of users. Samsung has been showing ads through the lock screen for quite some time, especially in its budget M-series and A-series smartphones, as part of a tie-up with ‘Glance’, a content platform that specialises in showing customised content to users. Vivo and Oppo phones also do the same through other third-party content providers. Furthermore, most of the Chinese OEMs throw up ads in the notification center, so much so, that it often becomes difficult to find out the notification that you were looking for in the first place.

So is it fair to demand only Xiaomi to withdraw apps from its UI while the rest of the smartphone brands are left alone in their quest to make a quick buck through invasive ads that depend on your smartphone usage to tailor the ads the system thinks is useful for you?

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Samsung Galaxy S10 to receive second Android 10 based One UI 20 beta soon

It has been two weeks since Samsung launched the One UI 2.0 beta based on Android 10 and now, the company is about to release the second beta to fix the first batch of bugs. The latest development comes as a hidden hint in the changelog of the Samsung Video Library app. The app says that it supports Galaxy S10 phones running the 2nd beta version of One UI 2.0. The update could roll out as soon as tomorrow, alongside the debut of One UI 2.0 beta program for the Galaxy Note10 lineup.

According to SamMobile, the One UI 2.0 beta could be expanded to more markets including Poland, France, Spain, India, UK and China. Further, Samsung is updating some of its apps separately for Android 10, and Samsung Video Library is one such app. It has a separate changelog for those on Android Pie. The quick development sounds promising and a stable release may roll out by the end of this year.

The One UI 2.0 based on Android 10 brings Google’s navigation gestures to the phones. While Samsung has not removed its own take on navigation gestures, it has added Google’s way to navigate the phone so users can choose whatever they are comfortable with. One UI 2.0 also comes equipped with a new shortcut and gesture for enabling One-handed mode.

One UI 2.0 comes with a new camera UI. Camera modes are no longer available above the shutter button. Apart from Photo, Video, Live Focus and Live Focus Video, all other modes are grouped together in the More section. Samsung has also rolled out a new screen recording feature from the Galaxy Note10 to other devices with One UI 2.0. 

Moreover, with One UI 2.0 Samsung is also adding focus mode to digital wellbeing.

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India-bound Realme 5s gets certified, Realme fitness band in the works

Realme, which recently launched the Realme XT smartphone in India at Rs 15,999, is preparing to bring more devices to the country. According to a recent report by NashvilleChatterClass, a new smartphone called Realme 5s has just been certified for India and Thailand, which means it could be launched in the two countries shortly. What’s more, Realme CEO Madhav Sheth has dropped a hint in a recent video that suggests the introduction of a Realme fitness band in the market soon.

The Realme 5s, which was hitherto referred to as RMX1925, is expected to sit between the Realme 5 and Realme 5 Pro when it’s launched in India. According to the report, its final model name was revealed in the certification issued by Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC). The certification issued by  India’s Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) only mentions the codename RMX1925. Unfortunately, the two certifications don’t reveal the specifications of the upcoming Realme 5s.

Go straight to 05:36:00 in the video

Because the Realme 5 features a 6.5-inch IPS LCD screen, and the Realme 5 Pro, a 6.3-inch unit, we expect the Realme 5s to sport a display of a similar size. The phone could be powered by either a Snapdragon 600 or 700 series chipset from Qualcomm with up to 6GB (or even 8GB) of RAM. Like its brethren, the Realme 5s is expected to run ColorOS 6.1 based on Android 9 Pie. But since none of these details have been confirmed by an official source, we suggest you take them with a pinch of salt until we get solid information.

It appears Realme is also planning to bring a Xiaomi Mi Band-rivalling fitness band to the country sometime soon. In the eleventh episode of Realme’s ‘#AskMadhav’ video series, company CEO Madhav Sheth is seen saying, “I can just give you a hint: if you’re a fitness enthusiast, time to get fitter, guys.” Apart from this cryptic line that hints at a fitness band from Realme, Sheth is also seen giving a coy ‘Why not?’ nod to the idea of a VOOC-supported power bank.

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Twitter starts rolling out OLED-friendly Lights out dark mode to its Android app

Dark mode was first introduced on Twitter’s Android app way back in 2016. Now, following reports of Twitter testing a new dark mode named “Lights out” on its Android app, the social media company has started rolling it out on the Android app. It was first introduced on the iOS app in March. Twitter VP of Design and Research revealed that the Lights out mode would be unveiled for Android sometime by mid-September, but it was only available for the alpha version of the app till now.

The new Twitter Dark Mode for Android contains a third element under the display head. It lets users pick the dark mode appearance between two options - Dim and Lights out. ‘Dim’ refers to  Twitter’s existing dark mode in the stable app, whereas the ‘Lights out’ mode is new. Lights out mode lets users switch the interface to a true-black tone. It is said to help curb power consumption on phones with OLED displays. You can see the difference between Dim and Lights out mode below.

The OLED-friendly Lights out dark mode for Twitter’s Android app is rolling out to users with the latest version of the app, which is 8.18.0. One can quickly toggle on/off the dark mode on Twitter by tapping on the light bulb icon at the bottom of the slide-out menu. It can be accessed from the home screen by swiping right or tapping on one’s profile picture.

Many replies to Twitter’s official announcement indicate that Lights Out hasn’t reached most Android phones yet. However, for those of you who have received the new Lights Out mode, you can enable it by heading over to the Settings and privacy > Display and sound menu. There is a new sub-menu called “Dark mode appearance,” which contains two options - Dim and Lights out. If you need to enable the true-black tone mode, select Lights out.

Welcome to the dark side, Android users. You can now go lights out on Twitter. pic.twitter.com/RpvstZvdnr

— Twitter (@Twitter) October 22, 2019

 

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Moto G8 Plus launch set for today: Expected specs, price and more

Motorola is all set to introduce Moto G8 Plus today. The smartphone will see a soft launch at 9:30 AM CT in Brazil, which converts to 8 PM IST. The Moto G7 Plus successor is expected to sport a new design, better cameras, and a bigger battery. Moto G8 Plus price and availability in India is also expected to be released by Motorola at 8 PM today.

Moto G8 Plus specifications (expected)

According to previous leaks, the Moto G8 Plus is said to feature a 6.3-inch full-HD (1080x2280 pixels) IPS display. It is tipped to be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 chipset, paired with 4GB RAM. Further, it may be offered in two storage variants, 64GB and 128GB. It is tipped to support a microSD card slot as well. It may also pack a 4000mAh battery and run Android 9 Pie out of the box.

In the optics department, the Moto G8 Plus is expected to sport a triple rear camera setup, including a 48MP main sensor + a 16MP wide-angle sensor with 117-degree field of view + a 5MP depth sensor alongside a laser autofocus system that allows users to focus in a more precise way. On the front, it is expected to come equipped with a 25MP selfie shooter.

In the renders, Moto G8 Plus was shown in Blue and Red gradient glossy finishes. The renders also suggest that Moto G8 Plus will sport a waterdrop-style notch, a considerable chin at the bottom, and a rear fingerprint sensor built into the Motorola logo. Moreover, Moto G8 Plus may feature dual rear end speakers, a USB Type-C port and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Moto G8 Plus price in India (expected)

Moto G8 Plus will soft launch at 8 PM today, October 24. There is no word on pricing of the smartphone. However, it is expected to launch around Rs 17,000.

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Pokemon Go Will Finally Introduce Online Battles With Go Battle League Next Year

Niantic has announced that Pokemon Go will get an online PvP battle mode called Go Battle League next year.

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